


Comfort Through the Storm

by SML8180



Category: Far Cry 5
Genre: Brotherly Bonding, Family Fluff, Joseph just wants to help his brothers, Music, Tattoos
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-10
Updated: 2019-03-10
Packaged: 2019-11-15 05:36:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,431
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18067586
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SML8180/pseuds/SML8180
Summary: Jacob and John both aren't fans of thunderstorms. While Jacob prefers to be alone, John hates the thought of being on his own during a storm that's passing through. Joseph, being the good brother he is, does what he can to take his brother's mind off the storm until it passes.





	Comfort Through the Storm

Lightning flashed overhead as the rain came down in sheets. John hadn’t been through a storm like this in some time, and he could easily say that he still wasn’t a fan. He’d hated storms ever since he could remember. Despite being a grown man who heard gunfire on a near daily basis, thunderstorms were one of those things he couldn’t stand. He knew Jacob wasn’t one for them, either, but his eldest brother wasn’t the type to go to another for comfort. Usually, once the thunder started, Jacob would simply leave and lock himself in his room, coping on his own. John, though, found that being alone was one of the worst things for him. So many late stormy nights, alone at the office while he finished paperwork for whatever case he’d been working on had proved that time and time again. When the wind picked up, and lightning flashed again, the Baptist picked up the book he’d set on the table beside his chair and left his office.

He slipped into the main lounge just as Jacob slipped out, passing by without a word. John found Joseph sitting by the fire he’d lit, his glasses set aside and a white leather bound journal in his lap. Neither brother said anything as John settled himself in a nearby armchair, getting comfortable before opening up the book he’d brought with him. The thunder boomed outside, and his grip on the book tightened for just a second. The youngest brother tried to focus on his book; it was one he’d read a number of times already, but he enjoyed it all the same. For a time, John was able to focus on his reading and the crackling of the fire, but as the storm picked up, he sighed, unable to focus correctly as the thunder grew louder.

Joseph looked to his brother out of the corner of his eye, hearing the man’s quiet sigh. He tried to think of what he could say to help distract his younger brother. The Father closed the book in his lap and stood to put it back in its place on the bookshelf. There was only a handful of things he knew helped John through storms like this; conversation, music, reading, even just getting him to sketch out tattoo designs seemed to help the man. Thinking for another moment, Joseph nodded to himself, and made his way back to his brother.

“John?” Joseph’s voice was soft as he addressed his brother, setting a hand on the younger man’s shoulder. He didn’t want to startle his brother, after all. “We haven’t worked on filling in the tattoo on my back in some time. We could do some now, if you’re willing.” The Father tried to be casual in his wording. If he was too obvious about trying to distract John, it wouldn’t help him. What he was saying was true, anyways; the pair had been chipping away at a large cross tattoo Joseph had wanted on his back, and the outline was finished, but currently stood only partially filled. They were going just a section at a time, trying to work around the schedule they held in keeping the Project running smoothly. Now, though, they had a fair amount of time to kill as the storm continued outside in the night.

“I suppose it has been a while, hasn’t it?” John quietly mused, setting his book aside. “I guess who could work on it, we do have the time, after all,” he went on, looking up towards his brother standing by his side. The Baptist stood, going to get his equipment without another word.

Joseph smiled to himself, and got a few things together for John. He set a pair of chairs together in the light, turning on an extra lamp so that John would be able to better see what he was doing, and set a table nearby for John’s equipment. Afterwords, he slipped off his shirt, setting it aside. He was thankful that he would be able to go back to wearing his usual buttoned shirts in another few days, it wasn’t normal of him to go around in T-shirts like Jacob did. The words cut into his skin were no longer sensitive to the touch, so long as it didn’t do anything to cause them to open back up. The middle Seed sat on one of the chairs, facing the back of it and crossing his arms over the back. John soon returned, and set out his equipment, hands already washed and everything else ready to go. He took a small breath as the tattoo gun buzzed to life in his hand, relaxing at the familiar sound, if only a small bit.

The Father felt his brother’s hand on his back, keeping them both steady as John began to work. The fast moving needle was a familiar feeling to Joseph, by now, and the sound was something else he’d grown used to. As his brother worked, the older Seed held still, smiling to himself as he could feel John’s bracing hand relaxing against his back as he worked. John had a steady hand, and Joseph found a bit of comfort in that fact. Despite all the tattoos he had, Joseph wasn’t one to trust just anybody to take a needle to his skin. The only ink he’d had done that wasn’t by his brother’s hand had been the pair of Doves by his collar bones. They had been nearly hell to get done, with how sensitive the area was from a lack of muscle or fat to cushion the needle. After reuniting with John, though, and learning about his skill with a tattoo gun, Joseph had asked if he could add a new tattoo to him; the portrait of his late wife, surrounded by Bliss flowers, had been John’s first work on his brother. From then on, Joseph only trusted his Baptist to take a needle to his skin.

As the atmosphere became more relaxed between the two, Joseph let his eyes shut. Any tension he’d felt in John’s hand against his back was now gone as he worked, and the realization let the older brother relax, himself. Soon, Joseph started to hum whatever hymn that came to mind, breaking the silence between him and his brother. Not long after, he could hear John join him, quietly starting to sing the lyrics to his brother’s humming. As this went on, John continued his work, singing with his older brother as he did. By the time they got tired enough to call it quits for the night, John had gotten almost a quarter of Joseph’s tattoo filled. They still had roughly half of the linework left to fill in, but that could wait. For now, John covered up the freshly inked skin on his brother’s back and started to gather his equipment to be clean it later on. Joseph straightened up, rolling his shoulders and head to loosen up the stiff muscles.

“We made a dent, at least. A couple more sessions, and we should have it finished,” John told his brother, putting away his equipment. He was far more relaxed, now, going off his tone and movements.

Joseph smiled calmly, nodding. “We’ll need to find the time, then,” he simply stated, earning a nod from his younger brother. After the equipment was cleared and things returned to normal, John made his way to his room, heading to bed as the storm started to finally die down outside. While his younger brother went to bed, Joseph went to check in on his older brother, quietly knocking at the wooden door before opening it enough to slip in and lean against the inside door-frame.

The Soldier didn’t seem to take much notice at first, as he tightened a small screw in the music box he always kept around. Joseph didn’t know where he’d gotten it, but believed it wasn’t his business to ask. He simply watched as Jacob wound the box, getting it to start playing its song. Jacob joined in the melody, softly singing the lyrics without even thinking. When the eldest Seed heard a second voice join him, he turned to see Joseph, and kept an eye on the man as they both sang with the tune of the music box on the desk, until it stopped playing. Without a word, the two older brothers exchanged a nod, and Joseph left the room, going to his own. The Father was simply glad that he was there to bring his brothers comfort through the storm.


End file.
